Brave New World
by Maat
Summary: Post-Revolutions. The Architect said that all those who wanted to be freed would be freed. This is the story of how that freeing came about, from the eyes of three different people from across the globe. Last Chapter Up!
1. The Beginning

Wow, a short story, this is weird for me. Just to let you know, this is a story in 3 chapters about the freeing of humanity, from the eyes of three different people.  
  
Oh, and a quick note: a miko is a Japanese priestess  
  
Thanks, and please give me lots of Reviews to tell me what you think!  
  
Brave New World  
  
Chapter One: The Beginning  
  
She awoke with a start, heart pounding, sweat clinging to her face. Breath coming out in short, hurried gasps, she took in her surroundings and almost seemed surprised to find herself in her room, laying in her bed, the covers splayed about her in knots.  
  
Taking a deep, shaky breath, she brushed her damp hair back from her forehead and felt her shoulders begin to shake in relief. Only a dream.  
  
It had been so real.  
  
The memory of it was fading fast though, ebbing from her consciousness like poison being extracted. Desperately she tried to hold onto it, onto the thought. It seemed important somehow.  
  
But all she could remember was that it had felt cold. It had felt like dying.  
  
That and the face of a man, grinning wildly at her as he.did what? She couldn't remember. She could barely remember his face.  
  
Part of her didn't want to, but she furrowed her brow anyway, trying to see past the sunglasses and maniacal smirk . . .  
  
"Alice! Are you up yet?"  
  
The burgeoning memory was lost as she swung her head around toward the open doorway. "Yeah, yeah, I'm up!" she called, swinging her legs over the side of her bed, fingers automatically going to the gold cross necklace fixed eternally to her neck.  
  
She padded downstairs to find her mom bending over the stove, flipping pancakes. Smiling, she wrapped her arms around her mother's petite frame. "Morning mom."  
  
"Good morning honey," he mom scooped the pancakes onto several plates and handed one to her. "Did you sleep well?"  
  
"Ummm," she found the memory of the dream fading even faster into the background. "Yeah, I slept ok."  
  
"Oh, so those circles under your eyes must be natural then," her fourteen year old brother teased. Her scowl was interrupted by her dad's weary voice.  
  
"Chris, Alice, hug each other good morning. I am sick of all this fighting."  
  
Alice reluctantly leaned in to hug her brother, and then recoiled backward in anger. "Damnit Chris, you reek of pot!"  
  
"Nuh uh, I told you, I quit," her brother flashed her a cheeky smile. "It just hasn't washed out of my clothes."  
  
"Mom," she wheeled onto her mother, who smiled her strained smile indulgently.  
  
"Honey, can we not talk about this so early in the morning? I don't want to fight," she yawned. "I didn't really sleep well last night. Nightmares." Sighing, her mother crossed to the window, staring out of it. "God, will you look at that sunrise."  
  
The dream flashed back into her mind as she took her seat at the table, but she brushed it away. She just wanted to forget about it and live her life.  
  
Biting her lip, she worried about her brother as she reached for maple syrup. Real life was sometimes scarier than dreams, it seemed.  
  
******  
  
"Naoko-chan!" Black shoes clicked on the packed sidewalk as the tall girl struggled to catch up with her best friend. "Naoko, Naoko!"  
  
Lost in thought, the sought after girl finally turned her head, seeming surprised to find her friend there, even though they walked to school together every morning. "Oh, good morning Umi-chan."  
  
"Good morning," the girl fell into step next to her tiny, frail looking friend, who was staring at the sidewalk and running her fingers through unbrushed black hair. "You look terrible."  
  
"I didn't sleep well last night," Naoko fiddled with the small bow attached to her school uniform, her hands shaking slightly. "Bad dreams."  
  
"Yeah, me too," Umi's eyes drifted to the Tokyo tower looming in the distance. "I can't remember them though."  
  
"There was a man," Naoko murmured.  
  
"Yes," Umi smiled suddenly. "I remember now. An American!"  
  
"Yes . . . " Naoko kept her gaze fixed to the ground. "I feel . . . shaken. Something doesn't seem right."  
  
"Do you want to go to the temple after school?" Umi tried to calm her friend, whose face was drawn and eyes looked lost.  
  
"Yes . . . yes, the temple. Maybe the miko can help me." Naoko was almost whispering.  
  
"After school then," Umi hooked arms with the short girl.  
  
Naoko looked at her almost fearfully. "Promise?" she begged.  
  
Umi smiled. "Promise."  
  
****  
  
He hardly ever went to school anymore. He hated it. The young man stood across the street as the bell rang and turned his back, walking away. It seemed pointless.  
  
He smiled bitterly as he took a final drag on his cigarette and chucked it to the ground. It was good to be alone.  
  
He hated people too, as a rule. As a matter of fact, he hated rules.  
  
It seemed he hated everything these days.  
  
He fell into a slow, relaxing step as he crossed the fields and the breeze picked up, rifling his clothes even when his stiff, bright red hair stayed perfectly spiked and in place. He loved his home though, the small villages and pubs of rural England. He seemed such a contradiction sometimes, a punk in the countryside. But what could you do?  
  
Settling himself on a hill overlooking the town he pulled out another cigarette, staring at the beautiful sunrise and mulling over the dark, frightening dream that had come to him in the night. But he could barely remember it.  
  
It had felt like dying.  
  
"Richard Blake, how had I known I would find you here?"  
  
The young man turned, smiling at the aging farmer who had ambled up silently behind him. "Hello John."  
  
"Skipping school again, I see."  
  
"It's my birthday," he said by way of explanation. Frowning, he pulled out a small package from his coat. "I got a letter from my mum."  
  
"And?" The older man tried not to look pitying.  
  
"I don't know, I didn't read it."  
  
"Are you going to?"  
  
Richard pulled out his lighter, lit his cigarette, and then held the letter over the flame. "No, I'm not."  
  
"Well, you must do what you think best," the old man began to continue his journey down the hill. "May God be with you."  
  
The young man scowled at the retreating figure. He would have hated God too, had he believed in such a thing.  
  
Sighing, Richard leaned back against the hill, staring at the sky and the brilliant sunrise, pondering his dream.  
  
That dream, that damn dream . . . he hated that more than anything.  
  
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	2. The Middle

I've brought you something new! Here is chapter two! I beg you to review! So I don't go boo-hoo  
  
Oh man that was lame.  
  
PS- a miko is a Japanese priestess  
  
Enjoy! (And Review!)  
  
Chapter Two: The Middle  
  
Smiling, Alice stopped by a small shop and stuck her head in, the bell ringing softly above her. "Hello?"  
  
"We're closed . . . oh Alice, it's you," a very tall, angular woman emerged from the back of the store, wavy brown hair hanging in her face.  
  
"Morning Sal Sal. I'm walking to school, and I could use some company."  
  
"Of course," the elder of the two reached for her coat before stepping into the street and giving her sister a hug. "You haven't stopped by for a while."  
  
"Sorry," Alice smiled up at the twenty year old, only two years her senior. "Life's been crazy."  
  
"So I hear," they began to walk slowly down the street. "Things not going well with Chris?"  
  
"He's so stupid, it's like he doesn't have a mind of his own!" Alice punched her hand in frustration. "I knew this would happen, I knew we should have never moved to New York!"  
  
"Chris has been a follower ever since he was born, you know that," Sally paused, unsure of what to say. "How's mom taking it?"  
  
"How does she always take it? She ignores it. Willful denial," she punched her hand again. "Damn city. I miss Ohio."  
  
"I know, I know. is something else bothering you?"  
  
"Oh, just this dream I had last night, but it's so dumb, I mean I can't even remember it," she clenched her fists in frustration. "But something about it just sticks with me."  
  
"That's odd, I had a dream last night too. More like a nightmare, actually," her sister frowned, wrapping her arms around each other to ward of a chill. "Did you see the sunrise this morning? Just beautiful."  
  
"Yeah," Alice stared at the buildings around her, feeling cold. "Beautiful."  
  
***  
  
The bell clanged dully in the peaceful silence of the temple. Naoko bowed her head and pulled the silken cord again, finding its sound calming as she prayed for peace of mind. That done, she turned to smile at her friend, who was standing a few feet behind her, quietly watching.  
  
"Naoko!" a thin woman in traditional red and white miko garb stepped out the building, long hair pulled away from her face. "I haven't had the pleasure of seeing you for a while."  
  
"Saru-sama," Naoko bowed her head respectfully at the priestess. "I needed to find peace."  
  
"You are troubled?"  
  
"A bad dream. I worried . . . I worried somehow that it might be a premonition. Have you had any lately?" She looked pleading at the stoic woman.  
  
"The fire has told me nothing, but . . . " she looked worried. "I too have had disturbing dreams."  
  
"About a man?" Umi spoke up. "An American?"  
  
The miko looked taken about. "Yes, I believe so, but I . . . I cannot remember much.  
  
"But you agree with me that something is wrong?"  
  
Saru frowned at the schoolgirl. "Yes, I do think something is wrong. Very wrong."  
  
Naoko fingered the silken cord in front of her. "I believe . . . I will join you in the temple."  
  
"Yes, Naoko, we will pray together," The miko took her by the arm. Umi cleared her throat.  
  
"I have to go, but I . . . I hope it all goes well." She stared at her friend. "I hope you find peace."  
  
She turned and walked away.  
  
***  
  
Alice couldn't fall asleep that night. Somewhere in the back of her mind she was still afraid of that dream, of the possibility that it might come back. Finally though, as if something were commanding her brain to relax, she drifted off, falling into a deep, dreamless slumber.  
  
Suddenly the darkness of her mind receded as she found herself standing in a blindingly white washed room, facing a man.  
  
But it was not the man she feared that she would dream about. This man was clad entirely in white, his face aged and somehow sad as he stared at her, his face reflected in the hundreds of TV screens surrounding him.  
  
"Alice Kays," He pronounced her name slowly, and suddenly it was her face staring at her from the screens. "Do you know why you are here?"  
  
Images flashed across the screen, images from her life, and also of lives not her own. Among them were views from around the world, a thin girl from Japan, a redheaded boy from England. And she knew with utter certainty what he wanted her to know.  
  
"The world isn't real," she said softly.  
  
"Yes," he said, and nodded, having placed that knowledge in her head. "And know you know what lies before you."  
  
"Why are you giving me this choice?" she asked, knowing about the war, about the many fights and battles, about Neo. Somehow, without speaking, he had told her everything.  
  
He sighed. "Because I have to."  
  
She nodded slowly.  
  
He stared at her. "But I can see it in you, I can see the thoughts running through your head, leading to your choice. In that aspect, it is not really a choice at all. It is merely a reaction."  
  
He spoke as a man trying to convince himself of something. Alice nodded once more, strangely calm and certain of herself with this knowledge he had given her.  
  
"I have made my choice."  
  
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	3. The End

Hello again! This is the last chapter of my attempt to tie up a few of the loose ends that were left after the end of Matrix: Revolutions. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story! And if you enjoy it, be sure to read Transfer: The First, my other Matrix fanfiction.  
  
Thank you so much my reviewers, Anne and NathanPostmark! I bask in the glow of your review! *basks*  
  
Enjoy!! Review!!  
  
Chapter Three: The End  
  
Richard cranked the music up in his car as he made his way across the countryside, towards London. Deep in thought, he entered the city, and, not even knowing where he was headed, made the requisite turns until he found himself outside of a park located near the center of the metropolis.  
  
Turning his car off he stepped outside, feeling the wind bite into him as he stared across the street. People from all walks of life were filtering into the small green area, all with strangely intent, vacant looks covering their faces.  
  
He walked across the pavement and into the park, his step falling into an easy rhythm as he pondered his predicament. Why was he here? He didn't know. All he knew was that he had woken up that morning from a strange, hazy dream and known that he had to come to London. He was pulled here.  
  
All he could remember about his dream was white. That and the fact that it had something to do with a choice.  
  
Was that what brought him here? Choice?  
  
Or destiny?  
  
His shuffling footsteps stopped behind a heavyset, once-young woman with her back toward him. Not even knowing why himself, he raised his hand and tapped her on the shoulder.  
  
She turned and gaped at him as he suddenly felt cold. Why had he done that? Why was he even here?  
  
He hated unanswered questions. But most of all, he hated her.  
  
But here he was, standing right next to her, both miles from their homes.  
  
"Richard!" she gasped, breaking the silence. He managed a wane smile.  
  
"Hello, mum."  
  
She wrapped her arms around him and began to cry with choked sobs as he stared straight ahead, the lump in his throat growing larger with every passing second. Awkwardly he patted her on the back.  
  
She sniffled a little and stood back from him, her voice pathetically weak. "I suppose . . . you must hate me."  
  
He sighed deeply. "No, mum, I . . . I don't hate you."  
  
And oddly enough, he meant it.  
  
Suddenly the crowd shifted, and Richard realized that they were all looking at something. Slowly, he turned, feeling a sense of de ja vu, and gave a sharp intake of breath, startled at who he saw standing there.  
  
***  
  
"Good Morning Naoko-chan." Umi fell in step beside her friend as they walked down the street. Naoko stared straight ahead.  
  
"I'm not going to school today, Umi-chan," she said in a monotone voice. Umi looked at her in surprise.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
Naoko was once again acting nervous, straightening the folds of her pleated skirt, tucking her dark hair behind her ears. "I'm going to the Park."  
  
"What?"  
  
Naoko stopped walking and turned to face her friend. "Umi-chan, I want you to come with me."  
  
"To the Park?"  
  
"Yes," she took the taller girls arm and began to fairly drag her down the street.  
  
"Naoko, we have to go to school."  
  
"Umi, please, I need to go. Please, please come with me," she looked at her pleadingly. "I cannot do it alone."  
  
"Do what?"  
  
She turned her head away and began to walk faster. "I don't know. But hurry Umi-chan, we will be late!"  
  
"Late for what?" Umi tried to keep up with her friend, who was nearly running.  
  
By Naoko didn't know. She only knew one thing. The Park was calling her, and she had to go.  
  
She rounded the corner and smiled. There it was, right in front of her.  
  
Her destiny.  
  
"Hurry, Umi-chan!" She fairly ran across the street, disinterestedly noticing the multitudes of others joining her, all entering the park to stand in disjointed lines across the grass.  
  
Suddenly Umi stopped, causing Naoko's grip on her to slip. "Naoko, I can't go."  
  
"What?" Naoko looked at her, her eyes indefinably sad.  
  
"I can't pass," Umi struggled slightly, placing her hands in the air as if against an invisible wall. "I don't know why, it . . . it won't let me."  
  
Naoko was silent for a moment. "Umi-chan, did you . . . did you have a dream last night?"  
  
"Yes, but I don't remember it. I only," she struggled to think. "I only remember a choice."  
  
"And you're answer? Do you remember that?"  
  
"Naoko, it was only a dream."  
  
The small girl stared at her best friend since childhood sadly, her eyes filling with tears. "Oh Umi, I'm so sorry."  
  
"Sorry for what?"  
  
"I have to go," briefly she embraced her friend, looked up at her for a moment, and then turned and ran to the park.  
  
"Naoko!" Umi struggled against the invisible wall. "Naoko!"  
  
Naoko ignored her, crossing to the center of the green wooded area to stand all alone, arms wrapped around her as she stared ahead. And when the crowd turned with muted gasps, she was not surprised at what she saw.  
  
Umi stared the distant figure, fighting back tears even though she didn't know why she should be crying. And when the crowd murmured and turned, she followed their gaze.  
  
And saw nothing at all.  
  
***  
  
Alice slowed to a stop near the center of Central Park and stared at the glistening surface of the water. How strange that all of these people were here, some standing in twos or threes, most standing alone like her. Did they know why they were here?  
  
Because she didn't. But somehow she hadn't made it to school that day. Instead, she had found herself here, pulled by an unknown force to stand in this spot in the middle of the city's largest park. And yet she didn't know why.  
  
"Alice?" A call reached her ears and she turned in time to see her sister enter the park, looking somewhat lost.  
  
"Sally!" They ran toward each other and laughed, wrapping the other in a hug. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I don't know. I was heading out to get coffee before going to the store and somehow ended up here."  
  
"I'm glad," she hugged her sister again, feeling incredibly relieved, as if she had been worrying all along yet hadn't known it.  
  
"Me too," Sally whispered.  
  
Something caused Alice to turn and she stared, shocked, at the lanky figure of her brother leaning against the wall that lead into the park. But he made no move to come in. He just stood there and stared at her, his face wondering. She could see the question in his eyes.  
  
What are you doing there?  
  
"Oh, Chris," she whispered to herself. "You never really had a choice in the matter, did you. You never were the kind to make your own decisions."  
  
The crowd suddenly shifted, the murmur rising in pitch. Slowly, deliberately, Alice turned her back on her brother and faced the man standing in the middle of the park.  
  
She was not surprised to see him there. After all, she had seen him in her dream last night. She remembered that much of it.  
  
Quietly he began to speak, and Alice gasped as his voice appeared to emanate from directly in front of her.  
  
"You know why you are here. You are here for the same reason hundreds of humans are gathering around the world. I am speaking to them all, as I am speaking to you."  
  
He turned to stare at the crowd for a moment, silent.  
  
"You are here because you made," his lips curled into a sneer as if he could barely stand to say the word, "A choice. You are here because you are leaving. You are the small percent of the world that has rejected what I have offered you. And so you in turn are rejected, by your own decision."  
  
He paused one more. "And so, I am setting you free. You are all going . . . home."  
  
In the back of her mind, Alice was scared. Terrified, actually. But she also knew that it was right. For how could she stay in such a place?  
  
Quietly she reached over and gripped Sally's hand, taking comfort in the warmth she felt as she prepared for her journey.  
  
Alice looked around the park one last time before smiling silently at her sister. Brave new world.  
  
The End.  
  
Hope you enjoyed the story. Please review and tell me your thoughts! 


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